[Comedian2004]

August 29, 1951: Columbia Broadcasting System has offered Eddie Gaedel a contract to appear on its television program in New York, and other offers are pouring in.

Same day, another article: Bill Veek gave his midget, three specific orders before he stepped to the plate against Detroit;

(1) Don't swing under any circumstances
(2) Stay in the rear corner of the batter's box
(3) Stay in a crouch

"He was scared just before we put him in the birthday cake. " laughed Veek, in retelling the story, "But after we talked to him a while, he got over it."

September 5, 1951: A story where Veek is complaining about the midget being banned. He says if Eddie is banned because he is too short, then Drop should be banned for being too tall. (I like the way he thinks). Veek goes on to say how he insured him to the hilt. He also had plans to keep him on the team and wait to use him again when the bases are loaded.

Later life
Gaedel's major league career lasted just the one plate appearance, but Veeck continued to employ Gaedel in non-playing promotions over the years: in 1959, Gaedel and three other dwarves dressed as spacemen were seen presenting "ray guns" to White Sox players Nellie Fox and Luis Aparicio at Comiskey Park. (Gaedel reportedly said, "I don't want to be taken to your leader; I already know him.") In 1961, Veeck hired several dwarves, including Gaedel, as vendors, so as not to "block the fans' view" of the game.

Some claim that living down the stunt was difficult for Gaedel. Combative in his private life, he later became a heavy drinker and died of a heart attack after being mugged in Chicago in 1961. He was just 36 years old. The only baseball figure to attend the funeral was Bob Cain, the pitcher who had walked him. Said Cain: "I never even met him, but I felt obligated to go."

Due to scarcity, Gaedel's autograph now sells for more than Babe Ruth's. In his autobiography "Veeck as in Wreck," Bill Veeck commemorated Gaedel as "the best darn midget who ever played big-league ball."